Process for separating petroleum emulsions



Patented Oct. 27, 1936 PATENT OFFICE PROCESS FOR SEPARAIING PETROLEUM EMIULSIONS Ivor M. Colbeth, East Orange, N. 3., assignor to Baker Castor Oil Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation of Delaware No Drawing. Application January 14, 1938, Serial No. 59,091

10 Claims.

This application is a continuation in part of my earlier applications Serial Numbers 567,753; 719,293 and 757,124.

This invention relates to the treatment of petroleum emulsions and petroleum containing emulsions of water and oil and/or foreign matter, comm'only known as cut 61], wet oil, roily oil, emulsified oil, bottom settlings, basic sediment and B. S. etc., for the purpose of effecting the separation of the oil in the emulsion from the water, brine, or foreign matter, and rendering the oil suitable for commercial use.

Petroleum emulsions are of the water in oil type and are obtained from producing wells and from the bottom of oil storage tanks. These emulsions contain varying amounts of oil, water, brine and foreign matter and are more or less stable, depending upon the conditions under which the emulsions are formed. Emulsions containing finely dispersed water, brine, or foreign matter are difiicult to break and are known as tight" emulsions. Other emulsions not containing finely dispersed water, brine or foreign matter are known as loose emulsions. Emulsions differ in composition and character, as different crude oils differ in viscosity and gravity and are produced under many different conditions. Adsorbed earthy matter, asphaltic matter, paraflinic matter, colloidal matter, water, brine, high gas pressure, naturally occurring in the production of crude oil cause the water and/or other foreign matter to emulsify with the oil. Methods employed for pumping or lifting the oil from the well also contribute to the formation of emulsions. All these factors create different kinds of. emulsions. Some are tight and difficult to treat, others are loose and not difficult to treat in order to break the emulsion and separate the oil from the water and foreign matter.

I have discovered that petroleum emulsions can be broken and the water and/or foreign matter separated from the oil by means of substances or compounds derived or obtained by reaction between blown or oxidized fatty oils and reagents that will react with aldehydes, and it is an object of this invention to treat petroleum emulsions by said substances or compounds.

The term blown fatty oil" as herein used includes not only the oxidized fatty oils but also tended to include the products obtained when the fatty acids are usedin place of the fatty oils.

The fatty oils are blown or oxidized fatty oils as described in my copending application, Ser. No. 59,089, filed January 14, 1936. These blown fatty oils contain a considerable amount of aldehyde-acids, sometimes as high as 30% or more.

These blown fatty oilsare reactive with the same class of reagents that react with aldehydes or aldehyde-acids. The reactive reagents include compounds such as ammonia or substituted ammonias, such as triethanolamine, for example, and other aliphatic or aromatic amides or amines, as well as substances such as sodium bi-sulphite and hydrocyanic acid, herein referred to by the term aldehyde reactive reagents.

The aldehyde reactive reagents combine with blown fatty oils and form compounds which are desirable for the treatment of petroleum emulsions.

The preferred blown fatty oil is blown castor oil, as it has thus far been found to be the most effective and satisfactory oil to use in the process. Other blown fatty oils, such as blown rape oil,

corn oil, olive oil, or sardine oil, and the like, as described in my application, Ser. No. 58,089, filed January 14, 1936, may be used.

The above mentioned substances and compounds may be prepared by reacting blown fatty oils with aldehyde reactive reagents until a sufiicient amount of the aldehyde reactive reagent has combined with the aldehyde content of the blown fatty oils to obtain compounds that will break petroleum emulsions. Usually about 25% or more of the equivalent weight of the aldehyde reactive reagents is sufficient. However, substantially complete reaction with the aldehyde content may be caused to take place with advantageous results. The completion of the reaction may be determined by well known methods, as by titration for example.-

A satisfactory compound or substance for treating petroleum emulsions may be prepared, for example, by intimately mixing anhydrous ammonia gas with blown castor oil until the aldehyde content of the blown castor oil has become saturated to some extent or substantially completely saturated. This may be accomplished by bubbling the anhydrous ammonia gas through the blown castor oil while stirriug, with or without added heat, in any suitable container equipped with a stirring device, thereby bringing the ammonia gas in intimate contact with the blown 011. After reaction with the aldehyde reactive pound or substance is ready for use.

- Other aldehyde reactive reagents may be combined with the blown'fatty oils by intimately mixing, with or without added heat, until the desired'degree of saturation is completed. .The degree of saturation of the blown fatty oils may be varied. As petroleum emulsions differ in character, the degree of saturation of the blown fatty oils suitable for particular types of petroleum emulsion may be determined by test.

These compounds or substances, which are the reacted blown fatty oils, may bemixed or combined-with a viscosity reducing solvent in order to facilitate ease of handling, feeding, etc. Suit able viscosity reducing solvents may be selected from the solvents such as benzol, toluol, anthracene oil, xylene, propyl alcohol, pine oil, acetone, petroleum solvents and the like.

In practicing the process a small amount of the reacted blown fatty oil may be fed into the emul- 'sion by means of pressure lubricators or pumps of the types now in general use in the oil fields, for mixing with the emulsion. Approximately one part of the reacted blown fatty oil to amounts of the emulsion ranging from 500 parts of emulsion to 10,000 parts of emulsion maybe used, depending upon the type and kind of emulsion beingtreated. The mass is allowed to stand until the emulsion breaks and separates into anupper layer of oil and a lower layer of water and foreign matter. The water and foreign matter are afterwards drawn off from the commercial oil. In, most cases .mixing the' reacted blown fatty oil with the emulsion in the usual manner is sufficient to break and. separate the emulsion in 'a period of time of one to six hours but in some cases where tight emulsions are being treated heat and/or agitation may be applied by the usual methods employed in the oil fields and a period of time of one -to eighteen hours may be required to separatethe emulsion.

I claim:

1. A process for treating petroleum emulsions which comprises subjecting the emulsion to the. action of the reaction product of a blown fatty oil and an aldehyde reactive reagent, said product being capable of an in suilicient amount to break the emulsion and allowing the mass to stand for a period of time sufficient to effect a separation-of the emulsion into an upper layer of oil and a lower layer-of water and foreign matter, then withdrawing the water and foreign matter.

2. A process for treating petroleum emulsions which comprises subjecting the emulsion to the action of the reaction product of a blown fatty oil and an aldehyde reactive reagent, said product being capable of and in sufflcient amount to break the emulsion, \heating and agitating the .emulsion and allowing the mass to stand for a period of time sufllcient to effect a separation of the emulsion into an 'upper layerof oil and a lower layer of water and foreign matter.

3. A process as defined in claim 1 further characterized in that the said blown fatty oilis a blown castor oil.

4. A process as defined in claim 1 further characterized in that the said blown fatty oil is a blown rape oil.

. 5. A process as defined in claim 1 further characterized in that the-.said blown fatty oil is a blown corn oil.

6. A process for breaking petroleum emulsions which comprises treating the emulsion with the reaction product of a blown fatty oil and an aidehyde reactive reagent.

7. A process for breaking petroleum emulsions which comprises treating the emulsion with a blown fatty oil whose aldehyde content has been substantially saturated with an aldehyde reactive reagent. v

8. A process for breaking petroleum emulsions which comprises treating the emulsion with the reaction product of a blown'castor oil and an aldehyde reactive, reagent.

9. A process for breaking petroleum emulsions which comprises treating the emulsion with the reaction product of a blown rape oil and an aidehyde reactive reagent.

10. A process for breaking petroleum emulsions which comprises treating the emulsion with the reaction product of a blown corn oil IVOR M. COLBE'IH. 

